All incoming fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students are to read the required books, listed by grade level. Follow the grade level requirements for reporting on the book. Please word process your essay or composition. The 8^th grade reading journal may be hand written but must be double spaced. For the essays, staple the title page to your essay. Be prepared to discuss the books you read the first week of school. These essays and presentations are your first grades for the school year. Do your best and have a great summer.

To Kill a Mockingbird is the other required book to read.  You will write a five-paragraph essay answering the question, what boundaries are threatened by the characters’ actions in To Kill a Mockingbird?  Think of the boundaries of race, religion, and gender and the tolerance for all three.  Does the book threaten one or all of the boundaries?  How does the book explain and embrace/discuss all of these boundaries?  Bring in various characters and discuss how they represent or support or break various boundaries. Do not use the pronouns "I, we, you, us."  You will write an introduction, three body paragraphs and a conclusion.  Please cite from the novel in defense of your thesis statement.  Example of citation: "She said she was going to leave this world beholden to nothing or nobody"  (127).  Mrs. Dubose was addicted to pain medication and she did not want to "meet her maker" free of any medication.  Even though Mrs. Dubose was dying, she showed her courage by trying to beat the addiction before she died.  As Atticus later told Jem,  " I wanted you to see what real courage is" (226).  Notice where the periods are in a citation and how page numbers are cited.

Your essay needs to be word-processed, double spaced in size 12 Times New Roman font. No other font is acceptable. Please proofread your paper for spelling, capitalization and grammatical errors before you submit it the first day of school.

Paragraph Two:
This paragraph introduces and explains the thesis and relationships of the main characters in the book you read. Try to describe each main character’s relationship to your thesis completely.

Paragraph Three:
This paragraph explains the conflict(s) of the story. This is the problem and how the problem is solved or dealt with. The events or plot of the book are also referred to in this paragraph since that is where the conflict(s) occurs. Often you can find the conflict by asking the following questions:

Do not merely state the conflict. Prove, through referring to events in the book, that this conflict really exists. It is not enough to say, the conflict is man versus society. Your claim must be proven through examples.

Paragraph Four:
This paragraph explains the theme of the book. The theme is different from what the book is about. To find it, you need to ask yourself, what did the main character(s) learn? This is the key to figuring out the theme. Theme is not stated directly, but must be inferred by the reader. For example, a possible theme for The Adventures of Tom Sawyer might be: The laws of society don't often seem fair or even logical. If this is a valid theme, then the events of the story will reinforce it as will the lesson(s) the main character learns.

It is this final paragraph that you will also give your opinion of this theme and the book itself.

Turn in your essay on the first day of school. Entries should be double spaced and either typed Times New Roman font size 12 or written neatly in ink. This will be your first grade for the quarter.  In August there will also be a discussion and test on the required books.

Students must make note cards for the additional which they read. This note card must be turned in on the first day of class. Do not make a note card for To Kill a Mockingbird.  Any additional books you read from the list should be marked extra credit and will be used at the teacher’s discretion

Please follow the reporting instructions carefully.

• Create one note card for each book that you read.
• Use 4x6 cards only
• Write neatly in ink or type your cards.

• BOOK TITLE: AUTHOR
• STUDENT NAME GRADE:
• SETTING:
• THEME:
• AUTHOR’S POINT OF VIEW:

• AUTHOR’S ATTITUDE TOWARD THE CHARACTERS:
• MEMORABLE LINE OR SENTENCE:
• WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THIS LINE?
• AUTHOR’S PURPOSE IN WRITING THE BOOK:

Polly's friendship with a wealthy family in Boston teaches her the truth about the relationship between happiness and money.

Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper of Prydain, faces even more dangers as he seeks the magical Black Cauldron, the chief implement of the evil powers of Arawn, lord of the Land of Death.

In 1855 two 13-year-old girls, one white and one black, run away from a southern farm and make the difficult journey north to freedom.

Jan Benes lies in a coma. Locked in his brain is a secret vital to the survival of the Free World. A team of doctors, technicians and all their equipment are miniaturized and injected into Dr. Benes’ circulatory system to destroy his blood clot from the inside. One of the team is an enemy.

Fourteen-year-old Lesley is upset when her parents abandon their comfortable life in Canada  for a kibbutz in Israel prior to the 1967 war.

When Thomas opens a secret file on his father’s computer, he discovers that in his "perfect"futuristic world , nothing is what it seems.

A young orphan boy is ordered by his master to infiltrate Shakespeare's acting troupe in order to steal the script of "Hamlet", but he discovers instead the meaning of friendship and loyalty.

A legally blind seventh-grader has always lived in the shadow of his older brother. Things change when the family moves to Tangerine County, where bizarre natural disasters occur.

In the Great Smoky Mountains region, a fourteen-year-old girl struggles to keep her family together after their father dies.

Collins, Suzanne Gregor the Overlander

From the laundry room of his building, Gregor falls into the dark Underland, where humans live side by side with spiders, rats and cockroaches.

A young teen living in a New England town discovers a mystery based on hatred and bigotry.

The lives of the Watsons, an African American family living in Michigan, are drastically changed after they go to visit Grandma in Alabama in the summer of 1963.

In a dingy shack in the poor Indian neighborhood he calls home, twelve-year-old Anand is entrusted with a conch shell that possesses mystical powers.  His task is to return the shell to its rightful home.  His quest will take him farther from home than he's ever been and will teach him more than he ever imagined.

The story of one day in the life of a young American boy in colonial Lexington, the day on which he joined the militia and saw his father shot down by the British.

A young girl from Sarajevo writes her diary during the turmoil in her country.

A young storyteller in ancient Persia meets Queen Scheherazade and becomes involved in a dangerous mission.

A 12-year-old Jewish girl in Arkansas befriends an escaped German prisoner of war, and this friendship leads to tragic results.

A Civil War era story about the interrelationships of white owners, black slaves, and their offspring as told through the eyes of a 12- year old white boy.

Herriot, James     All Creatures Great and Small (and others in series)

The true story of a veterinarian in rural England.

A 14-year-old girl describes the Oklahoma Dust Bowl (Newbery Award)

The true story of Heyerdahl and five companions, who crossed the Pacific on a primitive balsa-log raft.

Travis, a city boy, develops an unusual friendship with a young horse trainer on his uncle’s ranch.

Fifteen-year-old Jessie and the other rebellious teenage members of a wilderness survival school team abandon their adult leader, hijack his boats, and try to run the dangerous white water at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

In 1968, Jaynell's life in the town of Moon, Texas, is enlivened when her eccentric Grandpap comes to live with her family. 

Le Guin, Ursula K. The Wizard of Earthsea

Before Ged was the noblest sorcerer in Earthsea, he was known to all as a rowdy young man who sought absolute control. This is the story of the adventures of Ged and the difficult tests he must face before he can attempt to re-establish the balance of power in his world.

A 17-year-old Harlem boy struggles to become a champion boxer.

In 1942 two Rhode Island boys become involved with a German artist who is suspected of being a spy.

The classic survival story of a dog stolen from his California home and made to work as a sled dog during the Alaskan gold rush.

A collection of fictional letters vividly recreates the life and times of Harriet Ann Jacobs, a young slave girl who escaped to freedom in the 1840s and who became an author and abolitionist.

A teenage basketball player from Harlem is befriended by a former professional player who, after being forced to quit because of a point shaving scandal, hopes to prevent other young athletes from repeating his mistake.

Fourteen-year-old Donata is a pampered member of a noble family in Renaissance Venice. Longing to experience the world outside her villa, Donata disguises herself in boys’ clothing and explores the city.

An Italian boy is captured by German soldiers during World War II.

Chronicles an orphan boy's transformation from apprentice to artist n 12th century Korea. (Newbery Medal 2002)

An adult slave named Nightjohn teaches 12-year-old Sarny, also a slave, how to read, in spite of the grim consequences that could result if they are discovered.

A sequel to A Long Way From Chicago. In 1937, Joey goes off to work for the Civilian Conservation Corps. His 15-year-old sister Mary Alice has to stay with Grandma alone and becomes an accomplice in Grandma’s outrageous schemes to run the town.

The true story of pro football star John Cappelletti and his younger brother Joey, who was stricken with leukemia.

Sixteen-year-old Sally Lockhart must solve the mystery of her father’s death by venturing into the underworld of Victorian London.

A young boy living in the Florida backwoods is forced to decide the fate of a fawn he has lovingly raised as a pet.

Shortly after the War of Independence, sixteen-year-old Hannah sees her family life changing as a result of old secrets and new opportunities.

A story about the perils of popularity, the courage of nonconformity, and the thrill of first love.   

Retells the story of the Trojan war, from the quarrel for the golden apple, and the flight of Helen with Paris, to the destruction of Troy.

A master storyteller and an award-winning illustrator evoke the golden age of mythical Greece in this spirited retelling of The Odyssey.

As English armies invade Scotland in 1306, eleven-year-old Princess Marjorie, daughter of the newly crowned Scottish king, Robert the Bruce, is captured and held in a cage on public display.

Two lonely high school students befriend a strange old man, Mr. Pignati.